Wishbone (TV series)
Wishbone is a half-hour children's television show that ran from 1995 to 1997, airing on PBS. It was followed by a 95-minute television film, ''Wishbone's Dog Days of the West''. Plot Wishbone has no specific plot, but mostly follows the story of Wishbone, a Jack Russell Terrier belonging to Joe Talbot, a boy who lives with his mother Ellen in the town of Oakdale, Texas. The story follows Joe, accompanied by his best friends Samantha Kepler and David Barnes, and Wishbone as they go on adventures and misadventures, which Wishbone compares to classic literature. In these adaptations, Wishbone almost always imagines himself as the main character in the stories, and every episode goes back and forth between present-day Oakdale and the stories, before ending back at Oakdale with the outcome of the story. Sometimes after the end of the episodes, Wishbone will explain what goes on behind the scenes, in which certain members of the film crew will discuss what they did to make the visual effects look realistic. Aside from the stories, where he is visibly heard by characters in the story for the episode, only the audience can actually hear Wishbone's voice. Cast Soccer as Wishbone - a playful and somewhat troublemaking Jack Russell Terrier. He is the main character, narrator, and titular character of the series. * Larry Brantley provides the voice for Wishbone. Jordan Wall as Joseph "Joe" Talbot - Wishbone's owner and the deuteragonist of the series. He is into sports, especially basketball, a trait he carried from his late father Steve, who was a basketball coach. Christie Abbott as Samantha "Sam" Kepler - one of Joe's best friends, and the second deuteragonist of the series. She resides with her divorced father, Walter Kepler, who owns Pepper Pete's Pizzeria. Adam Springfield as David Barnes - another one of Joe's best friends, and the third deuteragonist of the series. He is into video games, computers, science, and technology. David resides with his parents and younger sister, Emily. Mary Chris Wall as Ellen Talbot - Joe's widowed mother. Angee Hughes as Wanda Gilmore - Joe's eccentric single next-door neighbor who initially takes a comical hatred towards Wishbone, but later warms up to him. Additional cast Joe Duffield as Damont Jones - the local bully, who constantly clashes with Joe and his friends. He especially doesn't like Wishbone, and due to Wishbone's intense hatred of Damont, Damont earns the nick-name "Da-Monster". * Joe Duffield is the son of show creator Rick Duffield. Justin Reese as Nathaniel Bobelesky - an asthmatic kid who is initially terrible at sports, but forms a close friendship with Sam. Adan Sanchez as Dan Bloodgood - Oakdale's postman. * Sanchez also performed as Lee Natonabah. He is a Navajo college professor, whose only appearance was in "Dances with Dogs". Julio Cedillo as Travis Del Rio - the owner of Oakdale Sports and Games. He is Melina and Marcus Finch's uncle. Behind the Scenes The costumes worn by Wishbone were designed by Stephen M. Chudej, who won an Emmy Award in 1996. Soccer the dog actually did not mind wearing the costumes, even though occasionally, a hat would throw him off balance when he jumped. For all of season 1, the music was performed by the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. While they were recording the music, they had no idea what the music would be used for. Filming Locations The interior shots were filmed in an unnamed 50,000-foot warehouse in Plano, Texas. The exterior shots were filmed on the 10-acre backlot of Big Feats! Entertainment, a subsidiary of Lyrick Studios - 200 E Bethany Drive, Allen, Texas. * Lyrick Studios also shares the same building as the Color Dynamic Studios, where they filmed the first generation of Barney and Friends. Additional photography was done in Grapevine, Texas. Additional photography was done at Jackie Martin Kaptan's 2-acre ranch in Princeton, Texas. For episodes "Frankenbone", "Shakespaw" and "Dances with Dogs", filming was done at the Division of Theatre, at the Algur H. Meadows School of Arts, Southern Methodist University, 6101 Bishop Boulevard, University Park, Texas. Trivia Future Supernatural star Jensen Ackles made his television debut in the episode "¡Viva Wishbone!".Category:Wishbone